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A DISCOURSE 






V 



THE HISTORY OF THE ESTABLISHMENT 



OF 



THE FIRST PARISH IN CARLISLE, 



MASSACHUSETTS. 



DKl.nKh'EI) IN THE FIKST PAKISH CHUKCH, CAliLlSLE, MASS., 
OX SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 187!). 



BY REA\ JAMES J. TWISS. 



K. 



LO WEX^I^ : 

.STONE, I'.ACIIKLI.KK .V I.I VINtlSTOX, PRINTKK.S, No. 18 .JACKSON ST., FISKE'S HLOCK. 

IRTO. 



'm^-i' 






A DISCOURSE 



UI'ON 



THE IIJSTOIIV OF TIIK ESTABLISHMENT 



OF 



THE FIRST PARISH IN CARLISLE, 



MASSACHUSETTS. 



l)i;i,l\EKED IN TIIK FIJtST I'AIMSII ClirKCll. ( A 1;1.IS1,E, MASS., 
ON SINDAV. KKHia AKV l.'.:. l><7;t. 



BY Jl¥A\ JAMES J. TWISS. 



STONK, liACIIKIJ.KK A- 1,1 VINCSI'l >N, I'KI NTl'.llS, No. IH .lACKSOX ST., FISKK'S lU.OCK. 

187!). 



'01 



J 



(' x I T '■ \ 



I 



DISCOURSE. 



" Woniau, believe nie.Mlie hour eonietli, when ye shall neither worship in this 

monntiiin, nor yet at .Icrnsaleni. worshiii the Katlier lint the honr eometli, 

and now is, when the trne worsliipjiers shall worship the Father in si)irit and in 
truth." — John iv: iM— L'.!. 



In the sjiirit of tliese words tlie Pilo^fiiu fathers of New 
Enghuid cnine to these shores, more tlmii two et'iiliiries :igo. 
Denied freedom of speeeli, and perseeuted for o])iiiioirs sake, 
they fled from their native Land, and fonnd a liome :ind country 
on this eontinent. They knew tliat God was not necessarily 
worshijtped, exclusively, in any one jjlace ; th.at no longer ;it 
Mount (^erizim or in Jerusalem must the devout believer offer 
the expression of liis reverence and love; l)ut that wheresoever 
the sincere worshi]>per sliould siii'iiify, in sj»irit iind in truth, his 
desire to adore God, there would God he accessible to him. 

And our fathers did not come to this land to promote their 
niateritU welfare. At least, they were sure that a supcrstiuct iirc 
of temporal )>rosperit v, to be permanent, must ri'sti upon the 
foundation of relin'ion. And so the minister was one of tin; 
coloiiv, as essentially so, as tlie farmer, or tlie meeliauic, or the 
doctoi-. The church was one of tlu' first institutious estaltlished 
in tlie community or town. Indee(l, in a (H'rtain sense, it com- 
prehended all others; for the sanction and snp]»ort of tlu' 
ministci- and church were necessary to the success of any enter- 
prise. Whatever tiiey condemned, w;us generally shoit-li\ cd. 
Whatever tliey a|>])roved was pretty sure to succeed. 

Tlie motive, then, which, as ;i general thing, impelled our Pil- 
grim fathers to cross tlie ocean and build liere a Jiome, was the 
desire "to secure a jdaee to worship God according to the <liet;ites 
of their o\\ n consciences, free from the molestations and ])i'rsecu- 
tions they liad experienced in Kngland ; free, too, from the un- 
congenial surrotindings, the irregular habits of life, the strange 
and uncouth language, the licentiousness of youth, t he manifold 



temptations, and tlic neglect of the ol)servance of tlie Lord's day 
as a Sabbath, Avhich tliey had so hiniented in Ilolhind." They 
were not mere adventnrers. They did not come to acquire 
wealth, or social, or ])olitical distinction. They came in 
obedience to the dictates of the Christian religion, and by 
the direction of Divine Providence, to build here a Ch'ristian 
Church, which should embody more of Christ's truth than 
any then known to the world, and, without lieing aware 
of it, to prepare for a more ample and varied a})[)lication of this 
truth among men. 

Very truly, therefore, does another say : "We can not be 
too often reminded that it was the Christian religion which 
effected the first ]>ermanent settlement in New England. All 
other motives had failed. Commerce, the fisheries, the hojie of 
discovering mines, the ambition of founding colonies, all had 
been tried, and all had failed. But the Pilgrims asked of God, 
and he gave them the heathen for their iidieritance, and the 
uttermost j»arts of the earth for their possession." 

Whoever reads the history of New England will observe 
that this truth has been confirmed in the settlement of most, if 
not all the older towns, the date of which, reaches back a century 
or more. It Avill be found that the church Avas the nucleus 
around which clustered the new community, and for the exist- 
ence of wUich the new community had l)eci)me an organi/A'd 
l)ody. If the church did not auticipate the town ; neither did the 
town antici]>ate tlie church. The existence of the former was 
never conceived .save as being the location of the latter. The 
establishment of the two was almost simultaneous. 

Such, then, were the circumstances under Avhich, substantial- 
ly, the parish here rejiresented to-day came into existence, one 
liundred and twenty years ago. I say substantially the }>arish, 
for the first meeting-house for public worship ever erected in 
this town, was built in 17C)0 or '01, and was placed very near the 
spot occupied by the temj)le in which we are now assembled. 

One of your older citizens, himself more familiar with the 
early history of the town than most of us, caused to be printed in 
the local newspaper, little less than one year since, a statement 
of a few facts of which I very gratefully avail myself, and 
from which it appears that " on the first day of July, 1758, 
Timothy Wilkins, of Concord, in the County of Middlesex, and 
His Majesty's Province of Massachusetts Bay, moved there- 
unto, as he quaintly informs us, by 'the love and regard he had 



for tlic |>iililic w orsliip of ( ioil, .•iiid 1 he ^'ood of his iinhors inul 
ft'llow-cicturi's,' (Iccdcd Miid coiivcyt'd to John (Ji-cl-m and t'k'vrii 
others of CoiU'oi-d, TIioiikis S|i;d(liii^ and {\\v o(ht'r.s of ClK'hiis- 
ford, and .lames Xiekles of IliHerica, a lot of hnid, for tlie '• Coii- 
venanev of hnildiuii' ■'' iiieetinii-house for the pulilie \vorslii]» t»f 
God, and otlier |iul(lie usc's.' Tliis Land is (he space snrroundino- 
tliis (liiii'cli, iiiehidinL;' tiial whieh it stands on, and what is 
ealk'd, ' tiie Coninion/ '' 

Here, then, the first Christian ehiirrh, in what, was after- 
wai'ds (^arlisle, lint tiien Coneord, was erected. Its dimensions 
were linmhU', bnt am|>h' enonuh for the nundier of those who 
desired, fi-om week to week, to gather thei-ein. 

The ostensilth- ]inr|Hise of linildini;' a new ehui'cli, and 
estahlishinn' a new religions society in this locality, was hinted at 
by the graiit<n- of the laml referred to. With himself and his 
iieiii'hhoi-s there was a feeling' that the ehurch(>s at Concord, at 
Chelmsford, at Hillerica and at Acton, were so remote as to 
t)eeasioii ti'reat iiicon\ cnience to those who desii-ed to attend 
divine service from this re<;-i()ii. Unt before this time, as ai){)ears 
from tlie records, strenuous l)ut unsuccessful efforts liad bi'en 
made to accomjilish the same I'csidt. 

In 1740 the subject of ori;aiii/,ini;' a new town from parts of 
Concord, Billerica, (lielmsfoi-d and Acton, bey'an to be an'itated, 
and was contiinied fi'oni tinu' to time, the aforesaid towns, 
iiowever, refusing to give their consent, until 17^)4, when Concord 
allowed a portion of her own tei'ritory, on the northern boundary, 
to be ('(instituted a district, called Cai'lisle. Greater convenience 
for attending pidtlic religi(Uis worshi]i w as the reason assigned 
for tliis movement. 

lint the wa\' seemed not to lie free from ditticidties even 
thougli till' mother-town had gi'anteil the desire of hei' importu- 
nate and restless child ; foi- after a three years' strugi^le to agree 
u|)Ou a location for a cliurch, holding moi-e than twenty district 
meetings, Ix'sides calling in the aid of sexcral committees, and 
tinallv invoking the assistance of the(u'neral Court, the people 
bccanu' discouraged, ]>etitione(l to lie, and were, restored once 
more to the maternal cMubrace. 

As the ditlicultv to select a location for a church would 
seem to have been the rock on which the efforts of the people to 
establisli a new parish wei"e wrecked, the danger was subse(|uent- 
Iv avoided by the geiierousdiear1e(I Wilkins, who deedi-d to 
certain men, as trustees, a tract of laml which hencetorth tor a 



6 

century — and may I not say, for all time to come? — was to lie the 
spot whereon should stand a temj)le dedicated to the worship 
of God. 

The first church erected in this town was not only humble 
in dimensions but "rude in appearanc." It Avas but a rough- 
boarded structure, destitute of clapboards, innocent of 'paint, 
and fui-nishcd only with benches for seats, in which condition 
it remained for twenty years. And yet, religious services were 
held in it constantly on Sundays during all this time, though 
there was no settled pastor — not even an organized church. 
" Often," it is said, " did its rude walls resound to the bold, 
zealous, imjiassioned and enthusiastic words of Rev. Daniel 
Bliss, of Concord, one of the most distinguished clergymen of 
his day. And once in August, 1764, the celebrated Whitfield, 
from its south doorsteps, preached to an audience far too large 
to be accommodated within. And from its portals, as tradition 
declares, on the morning of the 19th of Aj)ril, 1775, nineteen 
men, called together from the neighboring hamlets l)y the drum 
of Timothy Wilkins and the horn of James Kemp, started for 
Concord, under the direction of Lieut, James Russell and Samuel 
Heald, to join in the fight at the old North Bridge, and to 
pursxxe the retreating foe back to Boston," 

About the time this (the first) church was erected, the peace 
of the New England churches began to be disturbed by the views 
and feelings which Mr. Whitfield, the eloquent divine who had" 
then recently arrived from England, caused very Avidely to ])revail. 

For several years the work of devising and adojiting a 
uniform system of church government and discii)line throughout 
New England, had engaged the attt'ntion of the ministers and 
people. And "this work," says the historian of Chelmsford, 
Rev. Wilkes Allen, "had just been accoin])lished by the wisdom 
and perseverance of the fathers of the New England cliui-ches, 
which had enjoyed l>ut a short peace, when a host of mushroom 
exhorters and lay preachers, who owed their origin to Mr. 
Whitfield, sprung up and made inroads u}>on tlie })eace and 
order of Christian societies and churches. From his (Mr. 
Whitfield's) example, powerful eloquence, and infiammatory 
zeal, many settled ministers were induced to i)lay the Bi^ho]) in 
another's diocess ; and many illiterate persons to assume the 
oftice of itinerating ])reachers." 

The church in Chelmsford seems to have been sjiecially dis- 
turbed by these influences, "Many members," it is said, " Avere 



seduced from the siin|ilicity ;ind (ii-dci- of tlic l!,-os|k'I, 1o tlie gi-cat 
o-rief of their l)retlireii and of tlieir stated ])astor," llev. ]Mr. 
Bridge. At onetime " no h'ss than fifteen |>ei-sons were called 
before the church to answer to the charge of disordei-l\- conduct 
and violation of covenant engagements, in going after vagi-ant 
])reaclicrs and lay exhortcrs.'" And it was of a number of this 
class of jx'rsons who re(|uestcd to be dismissed fidui the Cliclms- 
foi'd church, that they might unite with others in forming a 
church in Carlisle, that Mr. Jiridge declared: "• 'J'wentv years 
have I been grieved with that generation. 1 uInc my most* 
hearty consent to tln'ii- dismission.'"" 

It would seem that those mIio constituted the original 
members of this parish, or religious association of men and 
women — those who worshipjx'd for twenty years in the first 
chui-ch in tliis town — sympathizcMl laigcly with the \ lews and 
policy of Mr. Whitfield, between whom and Rev, Mi'. IJliss, of 
Concord, there was also, I infer, an agreement of ojjiiuon. 

Mr. Wliitfiehl, ^yllile in college at Oxford, England, united 
with John Wesley, the father of Methodism, and with several 
other students, in the formation of a society which had for its 
purpose, not so much the ])rosecution of their studies as the 
promotion of their religious ijn])rovement, Wesley and Whitfield 
especially being impatient Avith the religious indifference and 
coldness of the established church. To acc(>niplish the end in 
view, the young men lived by rule and held fre(|ui'nt meetings 
for devotional j)urposes, thus exciting the ridicule of their 
fellow-students, and at length i-eceiving the name of Methodists. 

This society came finally to nund)er al)out fifteen members, 
and religion soon constituted the soh^ business of their meetings. 
They regularly visited the prisoners and the sick, and fasted on 
Wednesdays and Fridays. Of course their religious zeal was 
increased, and they gi-ew more and more impatient with the 
indifference of the church to which they belonge(l, until they 
practically withdrew themselves from that communion. Whit- 
field and Wesley soon became ])opular ])reachei-s with tlie 
masses, and drew^ crowds wherever they went. 

In the course of time Wliitfiehl, having bi-en denied the use 
of j)ul])its in which he had l)efore preaclied, resorted to the 
open air, an<l thus introduced field-] )reaching, addressing many 
thousands with great success. Wesley di<l not at first a)>proye 
of the new method, but tinalh' ac<juiesced, and the two men pro- 
ducetl a womlerful sensation. 



But tliey were not destined to continue together. In 1740, 
a sejjaration took place between them, Mr. Whitfield having 
become a decided and ardent Calvinist ; Mr. Wesley, an equally 
warm supporter of Armenian doctrines. 

Mr. Whitfield continued to preach to immense crowds of 
peojtle, Avho were greatly wrought upon by his eloquence, fervor 
and novel ideas concerning j)ersonal religion. So far from re- 
straining the enthusiasm awakened by his eloquence among the 
})eo})le, he encouraged it, and thus condemned the more moderate 
'and reserved methods practiced by other religious sects. Mr. 
Whitfield journeyed back and forth between England and America 
several times during his life. 

Somewhere about 1757 he landed in Boston, and commenced 
to travel and ))reach throughout New England. And it was 
not far from this time, I infer, that the agitation was at its height 
which so disturbed the Clielmsford church, and pi-obably affected 
more or less other churches in this region. The advocates of the 
new and exciting methods of religious worship were styled New 
Lights; and the people in this vicinity seemed to have been 
early infected with the mania. 

That all those who originally worslii])ped in the humble 
First Cliurch of this town were dissatisfied with the administra- 
tion of the Gospel in the several churches to which they pre- 
viously belonged, is not certain. Indeed, such could not have 
been the case ; for at that time the pastor of the Concord 
church. Rev, Mr. Bliss, was, as I understand, in full sympathy 
with Mr. Whitfield, and of course none of his peoj)le who shared 
the same sentiments would desire to withdraw from his fold 
because they failed to be edified by his ministry. But this was 
the cause of the desire to withdraw from the Clielmsford church 
on the part of " that generation " which had, for twenty years, 
so deeply grieved the soul of good Mr. Bridge, the pastor. They 
claimed that they were not edified by Mr. Bridge's ministry, and 
desired to unite with other and kindred spirits, in establishing a 
church in Carlisle, 

Mr. Bridge regarded with decided aversion the methods of 
the so-called New Lights, and probably did not fail to express his 
feelings Avith marked emphasis. Besides, so far as the- people 
that constituted the original parish in this town sympathized 
with Mr. Whitfield and Mr. Bliss, the Concord minister, in 
theological views, they Avere Calvinists. So that probably the 
religious services that Avere held in the First Church in this town, 



for the first twenty years at'tcr it was erected, were cliietly 
Cnlviiiistic in doctrine. Therefore, it is also ]u-ol»alih' that tlie 
malcontents of the Chelmsford cliurch were (Jalvinistit^ in doe- 
ti'ine ; and this distnrhed jNIi-. Brido-e (|nite as much as did the 
new forms and methods ot' reliuioiis worship introduced hv 
Whittield and his com]»eers; for the histoi'ian of Chelmsford 
informs us that Mr. l^ridu'e's a\ci-sion towards Cah inists, or 
Hopkinsiaiis, was so intense that he couhl hardly treat them 
with civility when he met them. 

The ])resent genei'ation, in this vicinity, can have hut a faint 
idea of the excitement tiiat attended the new foi'ins of worshijt 
to which I have referred. A descrij)tion of th(^ manner of the 
preaching of Mr. Bliss, tlu' C^»ncol•d minister, and its effect, lias 
been handed to me, which is said to have originally a|i])eai-ed in 
the Jjoston J'Jrenin;/ Post, IMarch 14, 174o, ami to have been 
Avritten by one who heard him. "He began," says the writer, 
"in low, moderate strains, and went on for sometime in the 
same manner; but towards the (do.s<-' of his sermon he l)egan to 
raise his voice and to use many extravagant gestures; and then 
began a considerable groaning amongst his auditors, perceiving 
which, he raised his voice still higher, and the congregation was 
in the utmost confusion. Some were crying out in the most 
doleful accents, some howling, some singing, others laughing, 
and Mr. Bliss still roaring at them to come to CMirist, they 
answering, 'I Mill,' 'I will,' 'I 'im eoming,' 'I am coming.' " 

We can well imagine, perhaps, how such an exciting, 
boisterous, undignified mode of -worship Avould inijiress many of 
tlie staid, circumspect ami conservative of our fathers, who 
believed in letting their moderation be known unto all men. 

Nevertheless, for twenty years the Fii-st Cliurch in this 
town was occupied by those who deemed it their pri\ ilege to 
cherish and ex])ress sucdi convictions ot" religious tiaith, and in 
that wav as to them sei'me(l t(» be approved of (Jod. And 
while their views of doctrine, and tln'ir methods of worsliip may 
not, in all j-es[)ects, commend themselves to the judgment of 
their descendants, we may not doubt their siiu-erity in desiring 
to l)ecome the true disciples of their Divine Master. 

It is probable that religious services were conducted in the 
First Cliurch during the first twenty years after its erection, 
chiefly l)y those ])ersons whom jMr. Allen, the Chelmsford liisto- 
rian, denominates "mushroom exhorters ami lay preachers." 



10 

At lengtli, however, the efforts of the people to obtain an 
act from the Legislature, incorjjorating them into a town, having 
been successful, the time had arrived for the partially finished 
church edifice to pass into the hands of new proprietors; and 
accordingly the town, by some act of the trustees not of record, 
received from them (they having held it till now) the title to 
the land and the building. This occurred in 1780, the year in 
Avhich the town Avas incorporated ; and it was in this church 
that the first town meeting was held. 

From this ])eriod there began to be apparent a new aspect 
of things. The j)eople were no longer citizens of several differ- 
ent municipalities, but they Avere fellow-townsmen, having the 
same interest in the material, social, intellectual and spiritual 
welfare of themselves and their descendants. All things must 
now be surely done "decently and in order," however irregular 
may have been past proceedings in respect of religious and civil 
affairs. 

It might have been expected that but little time Avould 
elapse before a Christian church would be estal)lished, since, in 
the language of the day, a '■'■meeting-house,'''' however incomplete, 
had been placed in possession of the ncAvly incorporated town. 
Therefore Ave learn that on the "28tli of Febi-uary, 1781, the First 
Congregational C'hurch of Carlisle Avas duly established, and that 
on the 7th of Novend)er, succeeding, Kev. Paul Litchfield, the 
first minister of the town, was ordained. 

And these services occurred in the first church edifice, 
Avliich had been recently clapboarded, painted and tAventy-four 
l^CAVS jnit in on the loAver floor. Subsequently, "in 1793, further 
imi^rovements Avere made, including the erection of a pul]>it, and 
nineteen peAvs, Avliich Avere placed in the gallery." "And here for 
the first thirty years of his long ministry," to quote the language 
of the friend already referred to, " were Mr. Litchfield's eai-nest 
words of reproof, warning and encouragement echoed fioni the 
qxiaint old sounding-board suspended over the pulpit." 

In those days it was customary to settle a minister for life. 
And so another custom prevailed which seemed to belong to, or 
was a part of, the rule of life-settlements. Hence we learn that 
Avhen Mr. Litchfield Avas called to be the minister of the town, it 
was stipulated that he should receive a salary of £80 per annum, 
and in addition to that £150 as a settlement, all in silver money. 
And this custom of giving the new minister, at the commence- 
ment of his term of service, settled, as it Avas supi)Osed, for life, a 



11 



sum of money, oi' oilier |>i-o|)('i't\' exclusive of his sal;n'\-, was as 
liH'iiefal as iIk' rule of life-settlements. Tin* amount tiius i;i'ante(l 
varied of course according fo cii'ciimstances. I su|i]iosc that, 
£150 in ^li'. Litchlii'ld's day nii^ht liaxc amountc(l to a sinu not 
far from ^i'){)i\ of oui- money. And as the |)urchasin<j; power of a 
(hiHai- was mueli <;-reat('r tlien than now, the ''settk'ment " of Mr. 
I>itchfield may he considt'red as liaviiiiJ!' heeii (juitc <i,'enerous. In 
a(hlition to the t'SO sahiry in sih'ei' money, it was also sti|Mdatc(l 
thai the minister sliould i-eccive twenty-six coi-ds of wood an- 
nually, and that one liorse and two cows should I)e maintained 
for him until lie was so situated as to maintain them himself, 
which, at the exi>ii'at ion of three years, ha\inn' ]Mircliased a farm, 
lie was ahle to do. 

Mr. Litchfield was ordaine(l N(»vend)er 7, ITSl. The P]ccle- 
siastienl Council on the occasion was constituted of ]»astors and 
deleg'ates from the churches in ]>illerica, Be(|ford, Concord, .\c- 
toii, Ashliy, Franklin (the eminent Dr. Emmons was the ])astor of 
that church). Situate, Abington, Medway, North Church (New- 
huryport), St'cond Church in Salem — twelvi' in all. Rev. Sanuu'l 
S|ii'inu-, of Newhuryjiort, ])reached the ordination sermon. 

It seems a little singular that the chui'ches in Chelmsford, 
in Wi'stford and in Littleton were not re|»resente<l on this occa- 
sion, it is to he presuiiu'(l that they were not in\ite(l. And if 
so, we can imagine the reason in the case of the Chelmsford 
church, for I suppose the memhers of the First Congregational 
Chui'ch of Carlisle followe<l in the line of docti'ine tliosi' who 
erected and worshipped in the ohi first meeting-house, before the 
incorpoi-atioii of the town. And thai, as I lia\"e said, was Cahin- 
isni (U' Ilopkinsianism. A church I'epresenl ing sucli theological 
views would not, therefore, he likely to en joy the sympat hy of 
the (/helmsford pastor, IJev. Mv. Jjridge, notwithstanding 
several of the nu'udx'rs of his own chui'ch had exj)ressed a dt'sii-e 
to l)e dismissed, that tlu'V might help constitute the new church 
in Carlisle. Indeed, the\ had left his commuinon because he ili<l 
not believe and teach Cal\inism, oi' Ilopkinsianism. If was 
not pi-obable, therefore, that he would lie invited to help oi'dain 
a man who would be selected liy such a chui'ch as theii- pastoi'. 
And that Mr. Litchfield was a Calvinist is conct'ded. lie co- 
incided in all points, it is said, with the system of theology then 
known as IIo])kiiisianism — a form (if the most rigid Calvinism, as 
taught by Dr. Samuel Hopkins, who pii'ached fur many years in 
Newport, R. I. 

LofC. 



12 

The church coinniciiced with ten men and t went v-f our 
women, thirteen of wlioni liad |ire\'iously helonu'ed to the eliurcli 
in Concord. I have not had the means of learning l)y liow many 
this uuml)er was increased by profession or by letter before the 
division took ]ilace in the church, which occurred sul)se(]-uently 
to Mr. Litchfield's death. I suppose the church could never have 
been called large, though undoubtedly earnest in the work of 
Christian culture and the promotion of the spread of what the 
members regarded as Christian theology. They were interested, 
we Biay believe, in the services of their pastor, Mr. Litchfield, 
who, it is said, was considered by his contemporaries a deej) 
thinker and a strong controversialist. His friend, Dr. Church, of 
Pelham, N. H., who knew him wadl, and fully sympathized in 
his rigid theological opinions, declared in a sermon delivered at 
the funeral of Mr. Litchfield, that "he ])ossessed a strong discrim- 
inating mind, and was fond of deep thought; that the ablest 
works on theology were his favorite study ; that his views of the 
essential doctrines of the Bible were distinct and well arranged 
in his mind ; and that he had the talent of jtresenting these 
doctrines with ])lainness and force. Who," continued Dr. 
Church, " could hear him without knowing tlie leading sentiments 
of his creed? When did he give an uncertain sound? How 
much did his devotional discussions enforce his exhortations to 
repent, to believe in Christ and obey the divine command?" 

This testimony of his life-long friend and clerical brother, to 
the sincerity and plainness of Mr. Litchfield's communications 
from the pulpit, would seem to confirm the statement of a hear-* 
er who was a constant attendant upon his ministry, and who 
said tliat "he seldom delivered a sermon in which he did not 
laud Calvinism, Hopkinsianism and condemn Antinominism, Ar- 
minianism and Unitai-ianism." It is said that he believed 
in a millennium and that it Avonld take place, or commence, 
al)Out 18G6. 

Uj) to the ^Gth of May, 1810, there was no convenience for 
suspending a bell in connection with the church, and a })roject 
for building a belfry and ])r()curing a bell had for some time been 
agitated by the people. But on the day mentioned the church 
was struck by lightning and entirely consumed. 

" Ten days after the destruction of the old church, a town- 
meeting was held on the common, at which it was voted to pro- 
ceed without delay, to adopt the necessary preliminary measures 
for erectincc a meetino^-house." 



18 

Siil)s('((uciifl V (he ii('ccss:ii-y funds were ))r()\i(]('(l, tlic locu- 
tion nuTi'cd u|kiii, . -111(1 a liiiildiiiL:; (•(iiniiiitlcc, cut ntstc(| with full 
|M)wcrs, was chosen. That cominittcc was c()ni|>(»scd of Asa 
Parlin, Tiioiiias llcald and Xatlian (Jrccn, Ji-. The i-csidt of 
those efforts was the religious teiii|de in which we are now 
assembled. As is known, oriuiiially the aiidieiuH'-rooin of this 
church included tlie entire space of the inside of tiie house; 
that is, what is now called Union Hall, beneath this room, was 
the lower floor of the church, containing forty-four pews, while 
the gallery, which I su{)]iose was on a level with the floor of 
this room, an<l extended around three sides of tlu' l)uilding, con- 
tained sixteen ])ew^s, one of which on the left liand side, Ix'hind 
the dooi-, being reserved for the benefit of colored ])eople, whicdi 
shows that the fathers Avere not entirely free from what has 
sometimes been called " colorphobia/' This church was dedicated 
on the second Sunday -in December, 1811, the religious services 
being conducted by the pastor, Rev. Mr. Tiitchheld. 

In 1852 this church w^as remodeled within and thoroughly 
repaired without. A floor was laid across, at tlu' lieight of the 
galleries, from side to side, which left the hall below- and this 
room above, an improvement which lias commended itself to the 
judgment and convenience of the parish, and village, and town. 
The cost of these im])rovements w^•ls, T am told, about $1200, 
which was earned and solicited by the "Ladies' Union," an asso- 
ciation of ladies connected with the parish. The persons who 
acted as a c(»mmittee to obtain these subscriptions were Mi's. 
•Irene G. Wheat, Mrs. B. F. Heald and Mrs. Fanny Taylor and 
others. 

In 18(>8 the old spire which, from its exposure to the winds 
and storms of nearly sixty years, "was thought unsafe, and the 
present syminetrical one was substituted."" Last year, the out- 
side of the church was very thiu-oughly re-])ainted; and now there 
are few places of religious worship in thi' country towns which 
l)resent a more comely and stately a])j)earance than does this old 
and reveiH'd temple, built nearly seventy years ago. 

The first indication of aiiy difference of religious sentiment 
among the members of the ))arish, or the citizens of the town, 
was observed when arrangements canu' to be made for the 
funeral of I\Ir. Litchfleld, wdio died in November, 1827. A com- 
mittee ap])ointed by tlie town desired that llev. Dr. Kipley, of 
Concord, Rev. Messrs. Allen, of Chelmsford, and Whitman, of 
Billei-ica, might be invited to take ]»art in the funeral services; 



14 

but Deacon Jacol)s and those whom he re})vesente(l objected, 
because they felt, it was said, that if those ministers were invited 
they Avould necessarily expect to occupy and sj)eak from the 
pulpit, which those who sympathized with Mr. Litchfield's theo- 
logical views were unwilling to sanction, as Messrs. Kipley, Allen 
and Whitman Avere pronounced Unitarians. I su})pose it may 
have been thought also, that if Mr. Litchfield had inade the 
arrangements himself for liis own funeral before his death, he 
would have excluded the Unitarian ministers. A majority of 
the town, however, seemed to dissent from the ground taken by 
Deacon Jacobs and those whom he rej)resented. But if I am 
correct in my a])prehension, the latter party succeeded in carry- 
ing out their plans concerning the funeral arrangements. Never- 
theless, it caused a wound which subsequently was irritated by a 
vote of the majority of the members of the chui'ch as against the 
citizens of the town, to take the custody of the church pro})erty 
nut of the hands of Deacon Green, who sympathized with the 
town, and placing it in possession of Deacon Jacobs. 

On December 31, 1827, almost immediately after the death 
of Mr. Litchfield, the town chose a commi'ttee to procure sup- 
]»lies for the pulpit. That committee consisted of one mend)er 
of the church and two ])ersons outside tlie church, Avho were not 
in sym])atliy with the extreme Calvinistic, TTopkinsiaii theological 
views of at least a majority of the churcli, but were regarded as 
being liberal or Unitarian in th'eir sentiments. Nevertheless, the 
two liberals on tlie committee for the supply of the pulpit, de- 
ferred to the wislies of tlie one jiiember of the cliurch, and so-* 
called Orthodox ministers were therefore employed from Sunday 
to Sunday during the year. And the same committee were 
cliosen the following year, and the same class of ministers was 
employed in the same way as those of the previous year, u]» to 
June 0th, when the churcli extended a call to Rev. Jose])h Clary. 
Mr. Clary fully sympathized with the late Mr. Litchfield in his 
theological views, but was considered an indifferent jtreacher. 
For these or some other reasons the town, l)y a vote of t\\'enty 
yeas to fifty-one nays, non-concurred w^ith the church in tliis 
call. And this, I suppose, was the signal for an emphatic protest 
by the majority of the church against the now obviously growing 
opposite religious sentiments among the majority of the })arish 
or town, which ]n-otest took tlie form of a witlidrawal from the 
parish by the method of, as it was called, " signing off " — being 
released by their own recpiest from all pecuniary obligations to 



15 



su|>|»(>rt fcliLjioiis worsliip in lliis town, .•iml niso iliscouncct iiitj 
tlicmsclvt'S tVoiii tlic cliiircli, .•it'tcr wliicli tlicy iiiiilcd witli tlic 
S()-c;ilK'(l Oi-tlidddv (liurcli and Society in Concoi-d. 

As it lias Itccn said : '' In tlic cai'licr jicriod of New Kii^land 
Conii'reo-ationalisni, tlic clnii'di as distinct fi'oni the asscnildv 
of worshippers — or the parish or town, as tlie case iniiilit he — 
took tlie h'ad in all matters peiMaininLi' '" pnhlic woi'ship, the call 
and settlement of jtastoi's, the determination of the conditions of 
coniinunion, the nse of ordinances, and indetMl pi'cttv mucli 
everythini:; hnt the raisim;' and appropi'iation of money." 

'^riie parish or town did, h<)We\('r, exei'cise its pi-ei'oi!,\at i\e 
when it chost' to do so, of dissenting fi-om the action of the 
church, especially in callini;,' and decidinij,' t]:e amount of the 
settiement and salai'y of a |»astoi-. Thus this tow n, or the first 
])arisli, voted not t<) concur with the church in callinii' lit'V- -'Mr. 
Clary to he its pastor, w hei'enpon the dissatisfied meml>ers of tlu^ 
cliurcli seceded 

8ul)se(|ueiitly they I'l'titioiu'd for tlu' use of the church in 
which to hold reliL;'ious services wlien not in use hy the town, hut 
the tow n was disincljnecl to Lirant the re(|uest, or at least it does 
not ap])ear that tlie town acte(l upon the suliject. 

On tlie (jth of June, IS-J'.I, the town voted to call llev. 
Ephi'aim Randall to he the ])astor; hut hefore the call was coiii- 
luuuieatcd to him he had accepte(l one extended to him fi-om 
West ford. 

On the 2Sth of Decemher, lS"21t, the ])arish chose a commit- 
tee to ])etition tlie General Court for an act of iiicoi'pcu-ation ; 
lint upon iiupiirv it was found to he nnnecessary — that the 
]iarisli or socii'tv M'ould he a le^'al hodv whenever it should he 
dispose<l to se\'er its connection with tlu' t(»wn and nianai;'e all 
its affairs within itself; and so the suhject was never eari-ie(I to 
the Legislature. 

A eommittee was also elioseii at this time (at a meetinu', I 
sui)))<)se, of the pai'ish which of course ijieluded the citizens of 
tlie town, clnireli niemhers and others) to ohtain the ehureli 
records, and consider what should he done conci'mim;" Deacon 
Jacohs's assertion that he had none — that is, had no church 
reeoi'ds in his ])ossessioii. Deacon Jacohs, however, suhsecpiently 
j)roduced the chiii-ch rt'cords in town-meetiiiu\ hut in a mutilated 
condition; wlu'i'eiipon it was \-oted to take no further action 
ill the matter. In IS'29, Novemher Li'Jnd, it was uiianimously 
voted hy the parish to j^ive Rev. Stejiln'ii Hull a call, the contract 



16 

between himself and the parish to he annulled hy either ])arty 
upon giving six niontlis' notice to that effect. The call was ac- 
cepted, and the installation occurred December 29th succeeding. 
Rev. Dr. Ripley, of Concord, j^resided at the council, and Rev. 
Dr. Eaton, of Boxford, preached the sermon. This union of 
pastor and people continued vmtil November 29, 1834, when the 
parish gave the required six months' notice that it desired to 
annul the contract with Mr. Hull, whose term of service, there- 
fore, expired on the first day of June, 1835. Rev. Mr. Capron 
then su})plied the pulpit for several months, when Mr. George 
W. Stacy received and accepted a call to become the jiastor, and 
was ordained May 4th, 1836. Rev. Dr. Ripley, of Concord, pre- 
sided over the council, and Rev. Adin Ballon, of Mendon, )»reach- 
ed the sermon. He was dismissed at his own request, April 18, 
1839, and now resides in Milford, Mass. 

Mr. Stacy was the last minister ordained or installed over 
this parish, all others who have statedly } (reached here being 
simply acting jiastors, whose engagements were renewed annually. 
Rev. J. T. Powers occupied the pulpit during eight years, but 
at two dift'erent periods of time. He was succeeded at the close 
of his first term of preaching service by Rev. J. T. Smith, now 
of Tyngsboro'. Other ministei'S have supplied the pulpit for 
various periods of time — some for a few months, others for a 
brief period of years. The present speaker has preached from 
tliis pulpit on Sunday afternoons for a little less than three years". 

The parish was organized as a separate body from the town 
on March 5, 1832. There are now living but five of the original 
members — William Green, William Farrar, Paul Forbush, B. F. 
Heald and Stephen Taylor. Dr. John Nelson was the first parish 
clerk, B. F. Heald succeeded him the next year, and continued to 
hold the office, with the exception of five or six years till 1877. 
William Green has held the ofiice of treasurer of the parish for 
over twenty years. 

The original members of the First Church and parish of this 
town have long since gone to their heavenly rest, and the ardent 
feelings and earnest expressions of religious and theological zeal 
have been succeeded by a greater degree of mutual forbearance 
and a warmer regard for fraternal intercourse, and a tendency 
to jilace less stress on speculative opinions and m^re emphasis 
on right living and true Christian character everywhere in our 
land. The un])rofitable and impleasant theological controversies 
of a hundred and even of fifty years ago, have given j^iace to a 



17 

broader style of tlioii<;'lit, a iiioi'e friendly ('(uniiarison of \ lews, 
and a wonderful union of spirit anions;- all reliuious sects. ^\r. 
Litelifield l)elieved that tlii' millenniuni \\'ould Ix'iiin in ISCiO. I 
tliiid< it V)egan before tliat time in the reliuious woi-ld, foi- some 
of tlie tiereest tlieologieal lions have, for a long time, comparative- 
ly, l)eeu lying down in jx'aee witli Christian lam1)s in this eountry 
and in Euro])e. \'ears ago, befoi-e 1 removed from Lowell, I 
heard one of the leading C/alvinist IJaptist ministei-s of this States 
publicly dechtre tliat he belie\cd tliere wei'e just as good 
Christians inside the I'nitarian and I niversalist chiii'ches as 
could be found anywliere. 'Vvwr he adiletl, that he thought, they 
were Christians in spite of their i-eligioiis doctriiu's ; not as a 
result of them. Coidd the de\dted fathers of old ha\e thought 
the same of the Unitarian church h'fty years ago. Dr. Tli])ley and 
his bi-ethren had l>een welcomed to the funeral of the veni'rable 
and lionored Hrst minister of Carlisle. T w ill l)e gratefid, how- 
ever, that such a bh-ssed change has linally been w roiight, and 
pray that the good work may go on. 

I must not omit to mention good old Deacon Green, of most 
blessed memory, whom, 1 am assurecl, no one could know without 
entertaining for him the deepest xcneratioii and hue. Ilis 
character is well delineated, it is said, in the lines on his tomb- 
stone, selected by Uev. Mr. Stacy, his }iastoi-, and are as folIoAVs: 

" To .sect or party liis lariic soul 
Disdained to be coiilincd; 
Tlie good lie loved of every iiaiiie, 
And prayed for all niaidsind." 

He held the office of deat-on before, and he still i-emaine(l \\ ithin 
its fold after, the division in tlie cliurch occuri-ed, until lu' was 
called to join the church above. 

Among the faithful workers in the jiaiish in the j)ast was 
Capt. Thomas Green, who not only renu'udieri'd it in his last 
will and testament, but whose nuuitle has fallen upon those who 
Avorthily wear it with his name, in the variecl interests of this 
parish he so loved. And there were t.yrus Ileald, and Benjamin 
Barret, and Thomas lleald, an<l James W. Wilkins, and Calvin 
Heald, who were also faithfid, and left a record which should be 
an inspiration to those who ai'c now on the field of action. 

I liavc referred to the religious, theological and professional 
character of the first minister of tliis town. Of the personal a])- 
])earance of Mr. Litchtield in old age, James fS. IJussell, tt'acher 



18 

of matlieiiiaties in the Lowell High School, says : " He was tall, 
long-limbed, broad but thin chested, with silver hair combed 
back and hanging gracefully down over his coat-collar. He 
dressed in a black, broad-skirted, curve-waisted coat, with minis- 
terial bands or ruffles. He wore a long vest and knee-breeches, 
with knee-buckles and long black silk hose. His shoes were 
large, and were also adorned with silver buckles, three inches 
square ; and crowning all this costume, was a three-cornered 
hat." We can imagine with what old-time ministerial dignity this 
man moved about among his neighbors and the citizens of the 
town, inspiring them not only with respect and veneration, but 
some of them with awe. 

It has been said that "the gentleman of the old school could 
not and would not be careless of the least thing that touched his 
personality. The cut of his clothes was an outward and visible 
sign of an inward and spiritual grace. His linen must be sj)ot- 
less, his clothes dirtless, and his boots polished to very effulgence." 

And Avhat was true of gentlemen of the old school in general, 
was specially true of old school ministers. For "wherever he 
was, the old school minister never forgot his ministerial dignity." 
He wasn't a minister in the 2iu]i)it and a horse-jockey or a hu- 
morist in the street. If he made a joke, it was a stately Avell- 
weighed joke — conscientiously made — as by one who felt that he 
must give an account of every idle word, and did not mean for 
the sake of a roar of laughter to have the balance against him. 

Thesei " old divines walked the earth like noblemen — men 
who accepted deference as theirs by right" — men who "would 
rebuke the vulgar if they failed to sho^ them the respect of an 
uncovered jjresence." And yet, these old school ministers, not- 
withstanding their vestment of frigid dignity, had great and 
tender hearts underneath ; and ^\hen the fount was opened, as it 
often was, love floAved forth in a noble and generous stream. Of 
the old school ministers S. G. Goodrich, whom some of you re- 
member as the " Peter Parley " of your childhood days, says : " In 
manners they were polite, and somewhat assiduous in their 
stately courtesies. Tliey ' spoke with authority, and not as the 
scril)es.' The minister of the gosj^el," Mr. Goodrich continues, 
"was a father, neighbor, friend, citizen — a man in a lal-ge mid 
generous sense. Manliness meant godliness, and godliness 
maidiness." 

It seems but an easy and natural transition now to notice 
briefly the influence of the churches, at the head of which these 



1^ 

old scliool iniiiislci's iircsidcd ;is the (d'.'iclcs of (lod. 'I'o the 
cliurcli rc'lntidiis, tlu'ii, of New Eiiu'laiid in the olden lime, is lo 
Itc ascribt'd, lai-o-dy, I fliink, the canse of thai which rcndci-s the 
[K'oplc of this |»oi-tioii of the land so much more |M-os|icrons in all 
things that pertain to t he liit;hcsf (•i\ ili/.ation than aiipcars any- 
w here else in tlic lv('|Md»lic. Judge Iloai-, of Concord, vi-i-v a)itly 
remarked al the first centenary of the North Chui-ch and Society 
in Salem, in July, ISTl!, that he looked ''sometimes with resjied, 
sometimes with adniii-at i(jn, upon modern im|)i'o\cinents." Said 
he: "1 am a fi-iend of Sunday schools, and I lia\c no doulit liut 
that they do good;- hut there is no Sunday sciiool instiaiction 
tluit e\-er |>i-0(luces the effect u|p(Ui the lieart and mind of the 
cliild ; tliat e\('i- trains u|i such nu'ii and \\(unen; that cAci- gives 
sucli charactei- and sti'ength to the c(Mnmunity, as (h)cs that at- 
tending cliui'ch fi'om I'arly childhood, Sunday after Sunda\-, with 
fathei' and mothei', in those old s(|uai'e ]iews — Itetter perhaps than 
tlie modern oiu's — under the eye of father and nn)ther, and there 
acquiring the liahit and feeling of i-eyerence, Lefoi'e tlie under- 
standing can catch tlie import of the long sermon ; and the in- 
fluence of these associations lias l>een carriecl westward, and thus 
New P^ngland chai-actei' and intlnence ha\ e l)een diffused across 
the continent." 

I pass now^ to say a word of the successors of tlu' tii'st min- 
ister of this ]iarisli or town. Rey. Mr. Hull had l>een pastor of 
K)»iscO])al churclies in IJeynliani and Aniesbury, this State, ])re- 
yiously to his settlement as the ])astor of this ])urisli. Tfe is 
rej)resented as a gentleman of ])leasing address and an acceptable 
j)reacher. His want of tact and judgment concerning business 
affairs, howeyer, sometimes in\'ol\ed him in enibarrassuient and 
caused his friends to feel much anxiety on his behalf. 

Rey. George Whitenu)re Stacy was, forty years ago, and 
still is, "an earnest jtreacher, a good worker and a inost zeal- 
ous reformer."''' This is the \-olunfary testimony of one of the 
eldei' niend)ers of the pai'ish, who adds: "Tie is one of the l)est 
men that eyer liyed," to all which we who know him will sin- 
cerely subscribe. 

Rey. J. T. Rowers is a man of good natural emlownients 
and of sonu'what extensiyi; genei'al infoianat ion, with not a little 
origiindity of thought, \vliich enables him often to s])eak in the 
])ulj)it with much f<-)rce. His labors in this town (at two differ- 
ent times) extend oyer a longer period than those of any other 
minister saye Mr. Litchfield. 



20 

liev. J. T. Smith — I am now quoting from the testimony of the 
}>arish — is a man of the strietest integrity ; an untiring worker for 
liis parish. Pie wellnigh earned his saLary outside the pulpit in 
2)aroehial Labors among the peo])le. To all which the first parish 
of Tyngsboro' can, I am sure, give their hearty confirmation. 

Rev. Mr. Hervey occupied this jtulpit for about two years, 
tliough I believe he was ecclesiastically connected with the Cal- 
vinist Baptist Church. Thus was presented the strange anomaly 
of a Calvinist Baptist minister othciating as acting pastor of a 
thoroughly liberal Christian society. It is said that he was a 
pleasant preacher, an amiable man, a Christian gentleman. It is 
believed that he felt, or knew, there is no difference between 
good men of all sects — that in all sects ai"e to be found good as 
well as bad men. 

It is possible that, though T have detained you so long with 
my imjierfect narrative, there are some things which you ex|)ected 
I would say, but which you ha^'e not yet heard, and that I would 
omit some things which you have heard. Perhaps you listened 
for some person's name that has not yet fallen on your ear ; that 
other names wei'e more conspicuous in the course of our historic 
investigations than the case seemed to re({uire. To all these 
possible hints I can but say that circumstances have not permitted 
me to make so extensi\'e and critical, and therefore impartial a 
survey of the ground I have gone o^•er as perhajis a larger op- 
portunity would have enabled- me to do. I liaA'e, however, iii^ 
tended to be accurate in statement, true in inference, and catholic 
or Christian in the treatment of the subject before me and in tiie 
accom})lishment of the work re(|uired at my hands. 

It but remains to be said, that your church and parisli are not 
old, as age is reckoned in your mother-town. Concord ; for tin? 
tirst ])arish in that town began its existence about one hundred 
and twt'uty-five years before your first church Avas ei'ected, near 
the s])ot where we are assembled to-day. But the last one hun- 
dred and twenty years have wrought such changes as the most 
extravagant and fanciful dreamer could hardly have conjured up 
in the most fertile of human imaginations. When Timothy 
Wilkins donated the land for the hrst church in what Avas after- 
wards the town of C-arlisle, tlie deed was given under the seal of 
George III. Since then, the few and feeble colonies have become 
a vast and mighty nation. And the Federal Union, originally 
composed of thirteen, has been multiplied into thirty-eight States 
of a consolidated Republic, while three millions of jieople have 



21 

incrc'.'ised to a poimlation of forty iiiiUions. Since the iinlc 
church first began to cclio with religious devotions, two civil w ars 
have passed over o«r portion of the American Continent, tlirouuh 
one of which a foreign <'hain that bound us was rent asunder, 
and by the other a domestic tyrant overthrown. 

And then, what strides liave been taken in the arts of j)eace, 
in the investigation and results of science, in accomplishing social 
changes and educational improvements, since the frame of that 
humble church was raised yonder. What a contrast between the 
])ew behind the door, in the gallery of the church, for colored 
people, and the ofhceof United States Marslial of the District of 
Columbia, tilled by Frederick Douglass, or the president's chair in 
the United States Senate occu])ied, in committee of the whole, 
by the colored Senator from Mississipfti, Mr. Bruce. Socially, 
the distance between these two events, our fathers would have 
said, is more than a thousaml years. And so with God a thousand 
years are but as a day, and a day is as a thousand years. 

Nor have the changes in theology and religious thought been 
less wonderful and grateful. And no city or town, or village in 
the land' has been left utterly untouched by their influence. 
Yours is no exception. The spirit of fraternal regard flows back 
and forth from those who, though they can not yet fully clasp 
hands on speculative points of doctrine, do join hearts in the 
2)rinciple of a sincere and devout love towards God and man. 

Has not the time, therefore, wellnigh arrived when, as at 
the beginning, the old Congregational Church and Society of 
Carlisle may I'Uibrace within its ample fold all the ])eople, leaving 
each one according to the ancient Congregationalism of INfassa- 
chusetts, to think and write his or her own thoughts, since this 
form of Congregationalism set sim-erity of belief ami Christian 
disci])leship above all forms of confession? 

]\[y Avork is hnished. I leave it with the prayer that God 
may Idess it to the good of the j»eo]»le of this parish and town. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



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